


Open your Eyes, See the Truth Beyond

by Hyperion_Exclusive



Category: Fallout: New Vegas
Genre: Established Relationship, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-20
Updated: 2020-07-20
Packaged: 2021-03-05 03:02:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,182
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25397341
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hyperion_Exclusive/pseuds/Hyperion_Exclusive
Summary: An idyllic life, even here in the fucked up wasteland of Vegas. But is it really?
Relationships: Craig Boone/Arcade Gannon
Comments: 1
Kudos: 4





	Open your Eyes, See the Truth Beyond

**Author's Note:**

  * For [flannelmoth](https://archiveofourown.org/users/flannelmoth/gifts).



“Open your eyes.”

Arcade obeyed, opening his eyes to Boone standing a few feet in front of him. The sniper had on the _cleanest_ black suit Arcade had ever seen (when the _hell_ had Craig worn a suit before, and where did he get one in _that_ shape?) and his beret, of course. He looked up at his partner after scanning him up and down briefly and raised an eyebrow at him, a little confused. 

“Craig? What’s going on?”

Arcade watched, amused, as Boone’s lightly freckled cheeks turned a bit pink, bright green eyes darting to look at the ground for a long moment before turning back up to the researcher’s face. He shoved a hand in his pocket and produced a small black box. Arcade would swear he felt his heart skip multiple beats.

“Well, ah, thought I’d finally take you up on that whole marriage thing, y’know? It’s been a few years, so I thought it’d be a-- mmff!”

He was cut off as Arcade grabbed the lapels of his suit jacket, pulling himself close and kissing his partner soundly. Craig reacted quickly, to his credit, arms going around Arcade’s waist and yanking him close to his chest. The doctor reluctantly pulled away once he finally ran out of air moments later, flushed and panting just a little. Craig was staring at him in surprise, his own face red, though he had the absolute biggest smile Arcade had ever seen on his face.

“You’re serious, right? Actually serious?” Arcade asked once he caught his breath again

“Have you ever known me to _not_ be serious?” Boone smiled crookedly, leaning close to kiss the researcher once more. Arcade laughed softly against him, a thought suddenly hitting him as he pulled away again.

“You know, typically couples that intend to marry propose to each other first, far before the wedding. I suppose we’re just going to bypass all that, today?”

“Why not?” Craig shrugged one shoulder, “We’ve never exactly been very traditional before, right? Why bother starting now?”

The doctor laughed shakily, clutching at the back of his fiance’s jacket and burying his face against him, trying desperately to hide the somewhat embarrassing tears that suddenly sprung from his eyes. Craig smoothed a hand up and down his back, the other arm still wrapped securely around him. He kissed at the shell of his ear gently, a smile still very obviously plastered on his face. 

“Let’s do it, huh? C’mon, everyone’s waiting.”

“ _Everyone?_ Craig, who the hell did you invite?” Arcade looked up at him again, a little worried.

“Not that many people! Manny, Julie, and that Courier, Nero. That’s it, promise.”

Arcade felt a little relieved at that. Better than having a sea of unfamiliar faces staring at them as they said their vows, or...whatever happened at a wedding. Oh god, Arcade had never even been to a wedding!

“Hey, sweetheart, what’s the matter? You don’t gotta say yes if you don’t wanna, you know.” Oh, but how his heart broke at the slightest hint of disappointment in his soon-to-be husband’s voice! 

“Craig, of course I want to marry you, I just- I’ve never done this, what if I mess it up?”

“Babe, promise, you won’t. All you have to say is ‘I do’, right? That’s it, I swear.”

“Okay...okay. I’m-- yeah, I can do this.”

Craig smiled, taking his hand gently and leading him in. Arcade swore felt his face heat up the second they went past the entrance of the little makeshift chapel, fingers tightening around Craig’s hand. The officiant, who Arcade didn’t recognize but who seemed to know Craig, looked up at them with a smile, and their few attendees turned to look at them, the bright red hair of Nero being the most glaring. Arcade smiled a bit nervously, following Boone’s lead as he walked them down the short aisle. They stepped up onto the platform and turned to face each other.

Honestly, Arcade completely tuned out anything the officiant said the second he faced Craig again, the breath being knocked from him at the raw emotion held in those bright, beautiful emerald eyes. Love, protectiveness, acceptance, and just a tiny bit of fear. Arcade squeezed his hands gently, smiling fondly. 

What would Arcade ever do without him? 

“I do.” Craig said suddenly, breaking the good doctor from his trace. He reddened just a hint.

“Do you, Arcade Gannon, take this man to be your husband in rich and in poor, in sickness and health, and in life and in death?” Arcade took a deep breath, gaze flicking between his partner and Julie, seated in a somewhat dangerous-looking chair, who simply gave him an exasperated hand motion as if to say ‘ _Get on with it, Gannon!_ ’

“I do. God, I absolutely do.”

“You may kiss.”

The official hadn’t even finished his short sentence before Craig pulled him into a searing kiss, fingers tangling in short blond hair. Arcade hummed in surprise, wrapping his arms around broad shoulders and letting his eyes fall shut...

_-_

_“Open your eyes.”_

Arcade’s fingers tightened around Craig’s hand, opening his eyes obediently. He let out a little gasp, spinning around to give his husband a shocked look. The sniper just grinned widely at him, holding his hand tight. 

“So, you like it?”

Arcade gazed at the house. It was simple, painted white and brown with almost completely intact windows. He looked a little closer and saw a small sign next to the door that read ‘Boone’, and Arcade felt his heart leap. A sweet reminder of his new last name, his new life with the man he loved... He turned to face said husband, wrapping his arm around him.

“Are you joking right now? You think I could possibly _not_ like it?” Arcade leaned a little, kissing the man soundly. “You’re incredible, you know that?”

“Am not!” Craig’s face flushed pink, and he looked up at their new house to avoid his husband’s fond gaze. “I was thinkin’ it was a good distance from Freeside where it won’t take too long to go back to the Fort if ya wanted, but safer than either Freeside itself or living out in the desert.”

“Fair enough. You just want to see me trip over that ridge on the highway again, don’t you?”

Craig laughed softly, shaking his head quickly. “Of course not! How could you ever think that?”

  
“Oh, sure, how could I be so silly, when last time we travelled back to Freeside by Novac and I tripped, you thought it a good idea to laugh at poor old Arcade as he dusted himself off.” The researcher pouted at his husband, leaning into him regardless.   
  
“I didn’t mean to! You were pouting, it was cute.” Craig lifted him into his arms, ignoring Arcade’s startled gasp and heading into the small house. Arcade looked around a little to survey the state of the place as they passed through, but mostly admired his husband’s face. He lay his head on Craig’s warm chest with a content little sound. 

Craig carried him through the relatively small house and into a bedroom, one hand rubbing his thigh almost unconsciously. He wandered into the sparsely decorated bedroom- much like the rest of the house, only major furniture- and yawned gently.  
  


Arcade yelped in surprise as he was dropped suddenly, grunting as he landed with a slight bounce on what seemed to be a handmade, new bed. He pouted up at his husband, who just laughed as he circled the bed and climbed in by his side. The sniper pressed himself against Arcade’s back, arms wrapping around the researcher’s waist.

“Can decorate or whatever tomorrow if you want,” Boone murmured against the back of his neck, “thought the house itself was enough for today…”

“It was perfect, Craig. Is perfect. I love you.”

“Heh. Love you too, babe.” A hand started rubbing circles at the doctor’s stomach.

“Something funny?” Arcade asked sleepily, a bit drowsy against his husband’s warm chest. 

“Never thought I’d care about someone so much ever again, not after...y’know.” He felt the sniper shrug against his back. “Even after such a long time, and these last months with you it still feels kinda...weird. Not bad, but… weird.”

A tiny inkling of concern crept through Arcade’s heart, and he wormed around to face his husband. He slung an arm and a leg around Boone, shifting close to press a kiss to his nose. Craig scrunched up his face a little in protest. Arcade snorted gently, settling his face against the sniper’s neck. 

“I love you, Craig Boone. I don’t want you to ever forget that. _Vos estis lux mea vita, mihi ad vivum causa, mi carissime dilecto Filio suo. Te amo, et nihil et nemo potest prohibere ad me._ ”

Lucky Craig had listened to Arcade at least a little when he murmured to the ex-NCR sniper in Latin when he was shaking in the throes of night terrors, for he let out a sigh and rested his chin atop Arcade’s head. 

“Love you too, Arcade. You’re pretty goddamn incredible, y’know that?”

The doctor smirked just a little, though he shook his head. “ _Subsiste sermonem statim._ I’m not and you know it.”

“Get some sleep, babe,” Craig said instead of protesting, “Gonna need it,” he murmured lowly, holding a promise in the near future of tomorrow, which Arcade gladly anticipated. He pressed closer to his favorite local heatsource, and let his eyes fall shut with a gentle sigh. 

-

_“Open your eyes.”_

Arcade opened his eyes with a frown, a little annoyed that he’d been dragged out of bed so early. His husband had his back to him, facing their smallish dining room table and humming. Craig had promised to let him sleep in after being ambushed by Raiders the day before on the trip back home from Freeside, however small a skirmish it might’ve been; Arcade was still sore

from that one bastard knocking him to the ground. Whatever Craig had planned, he’d better hurry the hell up before Arcade found a good place for a shallow grave. 

All thoughts of vengeance and a possible husband homicide vanished when Craig turned to face him again, holding a small bundle of blanket in his arms. Arcade stepped forwards, eyes wide in shock. 

“Is this...is...is this a _child?_ Craig, where did you get him?” His brow furrowed and he looked up to meet excited green eyes. 

“Well, a friend of mine that used to be First Recon with me got pregnant and couldn’t take care of it, so she came and asked if I wanted him. Remembered you fawning over kids at the Fort and that one time you got drunk and talked about wanting kids one day and...here we are.”

He looked back down at the child, too awestruck to admonish his husband for his assumptions, however correct they might’ve been. Arcade brought a hand up to touch the baby’s cheek. A tiny, chubby hand reached up to grab his finger and a burbling giggle met his ears. 

“D-does he have a name?”

“No, not yet. I was thinkin’ Ar-Craig, though,” Craig grinned, not even fazed when Arcade glared at him, even playfully. He shifted the baby in his arms, looking him over. “To be honest, I was gonna let you name him. You know me, I’m fine with whatever.”

“Are you sure, Craig? I don’t want to--”

“Babe, it’s fine. Promise. Whatever name you think is best,” he smiled lightly. 

“Okay… I think… I think Alexander.” He didn’t mention Alexander the Great; Craig wouldn’t understand or really care anyways. 

Craig looked down at the baby for a moment. “It’s perfect for him…” 

Arcade kissed his husband’s cheek softly, settling an arm around him. “Nice to know you listen to me sometimes,” he joked lightly, leaning into Boone.

“Hm? What’s that mean? “Course I listen to you.”

“I mean… I was drunk when I said I wanted a kid but you still...did this. Thank you, Craig,” He kissed the top of his head gently.

“You sounded like you meant it…” Craig flushed a little, leaning into him and resting his head on Arcade’s belly. 

“Still. Thank you.”

“I uh. I got his room all set up last night, too..”

  
Arcade laughed suddenly, wrapping his arms around Craig’s waist and hugging him warmly. “Craig, you’re ridiculous. I could have helped!”

“It wasn’t that much, just like...the bed, the uh...changing table, and a chair. That’s what she said we needed, anyways. Not sure if there’s anything more. I wanted to make sure it was a good surprise, I guess.”

Arcade kissed his husband softly. “You’re incredible, Craig. I love you.”

“Love you too, Arcade.”

-Arcade, just a few hours later, was already exhausted. He’d played around with the kid a little, changed a diaper or two, and had been dragged to bed by a grinning Craig once he put Alexander down for a nap. 

Now, he leaned up against his husband on the couch, head resting on the man’s shoulder. Craig had an arm wrapped around him.

“You’re amazing, y’know that, doc?” He said suddenly, prompting Arcade to look up at him.

“Hm? I mean, I suppose to you I would be, but why in particular?”

“You took so easily to takin’ care of him. Almost natural, huh?”

“Well, being with the Followers, even as a researcher, you find your share of patients, including children,” he shrugged lightly. “I suppose it isn’t odd.”

Craig chuckled, kissing his head softly and pulling him a little closer against his chest. “Take a nap for a bit, babe. You’ve earned it.”

  
He nodded tiredly, resting his head against his husband and closing his eyes…

\--

_“Open your eyes.”_

_“Are you deaf? Wake up, dipshit!”_

Arcade yelped as he was struck, jerking awake and looking around in shock. This wasn’t home, where the hell was Craig? Where was _he_?

Oh. Oh no.

He was in the Legion encampment.

  
Craig was at least twenty miles away.

And that bastard Courier that’d kidnapped him stood just above his head. 

Arcade looked up at the freckled, smirking face of Nero, his most hated person on the planet besides Caesar himself. Arcade scowled immediately, pushing himself up into a half-hearted sitting position and gritting his teeth.

“What do you want, Nero? It’s far too early for me to work.”

“Aw, where’s ya spirit? I’ve gotta surprise for ya, doc!” Nero grinned cheerfully, as if he were a normal person and not a murdering sociopath. 

A rush of fear and worry struck Arcade the instant he finished that sentence, standing slowly from the dirt and dusting himself off. Nero grabbed his arm and dragged him from his Caesar’s bedroom-tent, the doctor stumbling through the tent-flaps and squinting against the bright sunlight. 

The Legion’s leader himself turned to face them the moment they emerged, smirking. 

“Ah, Arcade. How nice of you to finally join us.”

“Yes, well, I was busy being kicked awake by your pet jackass, so-” he cut himself off with a yelp as a hand met his cheek in a rough slap.

“Shut the fuck up and listen,” Nero snarled, gripping the back of his collar and shoving the researcher forwards. Arcade stumbled, but was dragged into a fully standing position again by two nameless Legionnaires, metal-plated hands gripping his arms tight. 

“Now that you’re finished with your little outburst, we can continue. I’ve had Vulpes tracking this man for a few days, following him up through Searchlight and to Novac…” Caesar trailed off for a moment, and Arcade’s blood ran cold at the suspicionswhirling around in his mind suddenly. No way… he couldn’t have!

“I believe you know this man, dear Arcade. Craig Boone, ex-NCR sniper, former guard at Novac, then ran guard for a travelling researcher who trusted far too easily. I expected more of such a highly trained favorite of the Republic.”

Caesar stepped aside to reveal Boone, bound and on his knees, beaten bloody and bruised. The glass from his shades was embedded in his cheeks, the beret that never left his head Arcade could see being idly spun on Vulpes’ finger, and his armor had already been stripped down to just a shirt and pants. 

“Shit, Craig! What did they _do_ to you?” Arcade burst out before he could stop himself, terrified for his...his boyfriend. Not husband… not the other father to his child, not anything more than recent partners.

Nero gave him a threatening glare, silently warning him to shut his mouth before, more than likely, Craig got beat further. Arcade forced himself to silence. 

“I believe we can work out a deal, Arcade. You do the surgery, and we don’t kill your little boyfriend here. Hell, we might even let you go.” Caesar stepped close to Arcade’s face. “But refuse...and we’ll see to it that he meets the worst fate the Legion can give him.”

  
Arcade felt chills run down his spine, chewing on his lip. Just behind Caesar, he could see Craig weakly shaking his head and mouthing ‘don’t take it’. He pretended he couldn’t see him.

“Alright, you win. I’ll do the damn surgery. But I need my supplies from Freeside, and research books. I can’t just slice a tumor out without knowing a little about what I’m doing, you could die from the slightest errant twitch of a scalpel.” _Not that anyone would miss you,_ he added silently. Caesar smirked and spun on his heel, taking a few steps to stop in front of Craig again.

“Very well, Nero will take you to Freeside today. Get yourself ready, and if you even try to tell anybody about any of this, I’ll be sure to rip out this NCR dog’s entrails while you watch.”

“Fine.” Arcade’s jaw clenched, and he resisted the urge to glare lest the bastard twist it into a reason to injure Craig further. The Legionnaires by his side let him go finally, and before he could go to Boone, Nero grabbed his collar and dragged him back into Caesar’s tent to get ready for their trip.   
  


“Wait, at least let me get the glass out of his face! It could get infected and kill him!”

“Ugh, loser. You have five minutes, then I expect you to be ready to go, got it?” Arcade ignored the unspoken threat in favor of grabbing his meager medkit and going back out to where Craig knelt, head hanging limply as if he had already given up. Caesar was gone, and Arcade didn’t exactly care to find out where he’d gone just yet.

Arcade knelt carefully in front of him, ignoring the various Legionaries that milled about in favor of opening the medkit. Craig picked his head up to look at Arcade, smiling shakily, though he dropped it as the glass just beneath his eyes pulled the flesh.

“I’m so sorry, Craig, I should’ve done something more to keep them away from you…” he whispered so Vulpes wouldn’t hear, leaning close and gently starting to pull thick shards of sun-glass out of his partner. Craig winced a little, clenching his jaw.

“What could you have done? You were trapped here. It was all bullshit, they didn’t track me. I was here the whole time trying to get to you, they only just found me out.”

A wave of affection stuck the researcher, and he had to fight with himself not to hug his boyfriend tight. “God, I love you,” he whispered instead. “You should have left me. Gotten backup, maybe, but...I’m not worth all this.” He started on his other cheek. 

“Of course you are, Arcade. You’re worth all this and more.” 

Arcade smiled shakily, glancing around to make sure nobody was looking before kissing the sniper’s bruised lips gently. Craig kissed back hesitantly, trembling just a little. The researcher pulled away and bandaged Craig’s face carefully.

“I have to go now, but I should be back in a couple days. Just...be careful, alright? I love you.”

“I love you too,” Craig smiled weakly. “Stay safe.”

“Time to go, doc, fuckin’ hurry up!” Nero shouted across the tent, leaning lightly on a support pole, though he stood when Caesar, back from wherever he’d gone to, glared at him. Arcade sighed, standing and putting his medkit into his tattered backpack. He reluctantly went over to Nero, who let him out of the tent and to the gate.

“Now, don’t try to run, you won’t make it far. I have the remote for your collar, and I gotta say, i am a little curious about what your blown-up head looks like, so don’t tempt me. Stay close, shut the fuck up, and don’t say a goddamn word unless I say you can, got me?”

  
“Understood.” Arcade murmured. He kept a hand wrapped around a backpack strap, keeping his eyes trained on the dirt just ahead rather than looking at Nero’s back or any of the Legionaries that wandered about. 

-The trip was long and exhausting; Nero hardly bothered to rest for more than an hour or so a night, leaving Arcade sweaty and exhausted constantly. By the time they reached the Fort in Freeside, they had been walking for almost three days solid, with a short nap or two for Nero and no sleep for Arcade. The researcher stayed vigilant the best he could in his sleep-deprived state for even the slightest chance to get away, but he didn’t know the range of the collar remote, and he had no idea how to get it off. So, it stayed where it was; beneath his shirt collar and snug around his neck; and so did he, right by Nero’s side.

Arcade half-stumbled into the Old Mormon Fort just inside the gates of Freeside, waving exhaustedly at Julie. He ignored her concerned questioning for now, beelining for his old tent and collapsing with a sore groan into his favorite chair at his desk. Thank god, his supplies were exactly where he left them, right in the bookshelf. Hopefully the other Followers just thought he’d found a new travelling partner or something and didn’t ask questions of Nero; it’d explain why they left his things alone. 

He hauled one of the large textbooks onto the desk to leaf through it; he couldn’t exactly remember which of these thousand-page research publications even had the information he’d need for Caesar’s tumor surgery, much less for a _brain_ surgery.

He heard Nero distantly, talking with Julie, most likely, out in the main courtyard, but he paid no mind. He flipped through his textbooks, determining which ones would be beneficial to bring to the Fort, and which ones would just be deadweight on the trip back. Especially if he’d likely never be back here again… he’d have to leave some kind of note for Julie to thank her for everything. Maybe he could sneak something past Nero sometime. 

Arcade shoved every one of his plant samples and medical supplies into his pack without regard or even checking what it was; if he gave Caesar nightshade, well, no skin off his back. Hopefully. Nero might’ve had some kind of weird fetish for it, but Arcade didn’t want to think about that. And it was more than likely the Legion would force him to care for whatever injured Frumentarii stumbled back to Fortification Hill; they likely didn’t care enough for the regular recruits to bother giving them medical attention past a pouch of healing powder and squirrel bits, and that was just fine with Arcade. 

The tent fabric behind him rustled, though he ignored that too; he instead kept flipping through his biggest medical textbook. An arm suddenly came to rest atop his head, startling the researcher out of his focus.

“I’m busy, Nero.” He grumbled, indignant at being used as an armrest. The Courier just snorted, letting the arm slide off Arcade’s blond head. He sat heavily on the single bed on the other side of the tent, groaning. 

“God, this is the most boring fucking trip I’ve ever been on, y’know that? Only gotten to kill mongrels and cazadors so far, no people at all! Caesar should’ve sent fuckin’ Vulpes to play babysitter, least he looks like one.”

Arcade couldn’t hold back an amused snort, shaking his head a little. “It’s likely because we have previous history from travelling with you. It could be a familiarity thing, or it could be because Caesar thinks you aren’t as useful as Vulpes.”

“Shut the fuck up,” Nero snarled, “I’m twice as useful as that sneaky little rat bastard. Least I don’t dress up like the enemy like a goddamn coward.”

“Sure, but he at least gets useful information. The most use you have is wiping out settlements of innocent people. Killing those who can’t defend themselves isn’t exactly honorable, but _dulce vallum inexpertis,_ right? You haven’t been in any other major skirmishes, you weren’t even directly involved in Nipton. That was before you.”

Nero grabbed him by the throat suddenly, throwing the researcher to the ground. Arcade choked harshly, gasping and coughing once he hit dirt. He covered his throat with his hand protectively, cursing himself for being so slow on the uptake, and looked up at Nero with wide eyes. 

  
“Listen to me, you little bitch. _I_ killed everyone in Goodsprings and Primm, got that? _I_ wiped out two goddamned NCR bases on my own. I would have no problem killing you if Caesar didn’t

need you, but I swear to god, if you talk about shit you don’t understand. I’ll gut your little bastard boyfriend like a fucking fish, got it?”

Arcade nodded shakily, terrified. He could do _nothing_ to jeopardize Boone, especially not as messed up as he already was. God, he just had to learn to keep his mouth shut, why hadn’t he figured it out yet?!

Nero scoffed at him, backing away and sitting on the bed again. He glared at Arcade as the researcher picked himself off the ground, still rubbing gently at his throat. He wouldn’t need a stimpak, it wasn’t quite that bad. He had to save what few supplies he had left. 

He hesitantly sat at his desk again to continue his research; the book had been jostled a bit, but was otherwise alright. Just a torn page. Or four. Hm.

-Arcade damn near had to be dragged the last hundred or so feet into the Fort three or four days later. Nero had taken the trip back in the same stride as the outgoing one; i.e. no sleep or food, and _very_ little water for the researcher. 

He was thrown into the first at Caesar’s feet. The leader raised an eyebrow at Nero, confused. 

“What is this? What did you do to him, Nero?” 

“Nothin’, boss. Got him there and back as quick as possible.”

“I don’t believe I said to nearly kill him on the way. Are you fucking stupid, Nero? I need him to survive, you goddamned-” He cut himself off, gritting his teeth. “Get out. Find something to do with yourself before I remove your head for your disrespect.”

Nero rolled his eyes but left, leaving Caesar and the researcher alone and lit only by starlight. Arcade pushed himself up, wheezing just a little. The Legion commander silently handed him a bottle of water and a cut of bread. 

Arcade took it without so much as a nod of acknowledgement, drinking the bottle down quickly. He took more measured bites of the bread to keep himself from bringing it back up. 

“I got what you need. I need a few days to prepare and do a little more research _uninterrupted,_ ” he said pointedly, “otherwise the procedure can proceed,” Arcade rasped out a long, silent moment later.

“Good to hear. You’ll be pleased that we did no harm to your boyfriend while you were gone.”

“I need to speak with you about that. If you presume to keep me after this, and you will not let him go, then there are some terms.” Arcade stood fully. 

“Proceed, then. I’m all ears.” Caesar sat back in his ridiculous chair. Arcade took a deep breath.

“If you want me to continue…’serving’ your Legion, then I have some requirements. First: if Craig bleeds, so do I. Whatever is done to him, I will do to myself in kind, if I find even the slightest scratch on him. This goes for broken bones as well. I will, if Craig ever has any broken bones, destroy my dominant hand. I would be unable to do your surgery, and do any other kind of medical work, at least for a long time. There are no other doctors in Freeside, or the Mojave, for that matter, that can do this surgery.”

“Very well. Proceed.”

Arcade took a deep breath. “Second, I refuse to have either Vulpes or Nero anywhere near me or Craig. The spy and the rapist are to never be within viewing distance of us.”

  
Caesar sighed softly, but nodded. “Understandable, though somewhat annoying. Nero has some odd obsession with your boyfriend.”

“Believe me, I know. Before he...brought me here, he was always giving Craig these strange looks. Which is why I want him nowhere near Boone.”

“Very well, I accept your terms. But tread lightly, Gannon, my acceptance does not mean you’re allowed to run things any way you like. If you step out of line in the slightest, you’ll regret it, and so will your boyfriend. Understand?”

“I do. Thank you.”

“Good. Now, go into my tent. Your boyfriend waits for you there.”

Arcade tried his damnedest to not let the wave of excitement he felt show on his face as he nodded curtly to Caesar and headed for the tent, making sure the flaps closed as much as possible behind him. 

  
Craig was standing, leaning on the sad little desk Arcade had been brought with his arms crossed. He had on a collar as well, now. 

Arcade smiled brightly. “Craig!”

The sniper started a little, looking up quickly, then grinning. He opened his arms wide; all the invitation the researcher needed. He rushed forwards with a choked-back sob, hugging Craig tight and burying his face in the man’s warm chest.

  
“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry...I should’ve tried harder to protect you…” Arcade sobbed against him, clutching desperately at his tattered shirt. Craig’s arms wrapped warmly around the researcher’s shoulders, kissing the top of his head gently.

“It wasn’t your fault, Arcade. None of this was your fault, you understand? It’s all Nero, he’s the one that brought us here.” He hugged Arcade tight, trembling just the slightest bit.

“I...I convinced you to let him come with us when we traveled. I told you to-to stop keeping an eye on him because he seemed fine--”

“Stop, Arcade. It was not your fault, okay? Bastard’s a good manipulator. I only kept an eye on him because I didn’t know him, I could’ve never guessed he was Legion on my own…”

  
Arcade just whined, hugging his boyfriend tighter. He was terrified to let go, truth be told, afraid that Nero would just come in and take him away again, and Arcade could _not_ handle that happening again. Craig stayed there, even once Caesar came in to sleep and Arcade himself passed out against him, rubbing his back gently to comfort him. 

He wasn’t gonna let Arcade out of his sight for a good while.

-On the dawn of the third day back at the Fort, Arcade let out a tired groan and sat heavily back in his creaking, broken chair. It was done. He was done. He had all the research he cared to do to perform the surgery and… ‘hopefully’ not kill Caesar. Honestly, Caesar being offed would do the Mojave a favor. There was the problem, however, of the Legion not seeing it exactly that way. Though, if he tried his best, whatever happened after the fact was of no fault of his own. 

Caesar, just waking up on the bed not far behind Arcade, groaned irritably and sat himself up. 

“Are you ready yet, Arcade, or is this just your way of wasting time?”

“I don’t waste time. I’m ready. I need my supplies and for you to lay down.” 

He stood from his desk, turning to give Craig a worried look and biting his lip a little. Craig nodded stiffly and pulled Arcade’s supply bag out from under the nearby bookshelf where it’d been stashed to avoid any brave prying eyes. The researcher approached Caesar with a deep frown.

“I’d like to say, I’m no neurosurgeon. Despite my research, I’m not qualified for--”

“Shut up and get it done,” Caesar hissed between clenched teeth. He was obviously in some pain already…

Arcade just shrugged a little, laying out his blades and syringes and the like on a small bedside table and pulling it close. 

“Alright, Caesar. You’ll feel a pinch. Count down from thirty, and you should be unconscious…”

-Fuck. _Fuck!_ It had gone so well! Everything was going perfectly, he was nearly done! It could’ve been the less-than-sterile conditions and supplies, it could’ve been an excess of dust or air or a sudden buildup of blood. 

Caesar was _dead_.

Arcade yelped sharply as he was shoved roughly to his knees by Vulpes, two larger Frumentarii suddenly gripping his arms and wrenching them behind his back with no regard to his joints.

“See, ya fucked up, doc! You were warned about this, weren’t you?” Nero grinned wickedly, dragging Craig out alongside him. He shoved the snarling sniper down facing Arcade, though Craig jerked and fought against him the entire time. 

“Craig, stop, he’s gonna hurt you!” Arcade whined desperately. He couldn’t let his fuck-up get his boyfriend hurt! “Look, Nero, it was my fault, don’t drag him into this!”

“Shut the hell up! You don’t have any authority here, ‘ _researcher_ ’, the red-haired man said in a mocking tone. He pressed his knee harshly into Craig’s spine with a good few sickening cracks, making the man cry out in surprised pain. 

“You’re gonna learn from this, doc. That is to say, if you survive past the day. You with me?”

Arcade frowned; he wasn’t at all, but no point letting him know that. “You don’t have to do this, let him go. He didn’t even come near Caesar.”

Nero reached back, drawing a wicked-looking knife from a holster on his belt, bringing it around and pressing it to Craig’s throat. Boone swallowed thickly, freezing suddenly. He kept a visible calm, but Arcade could see him starting to shake. 

“Nero, Nero, _please_ ,” Arcade choked up, blinking away tears as the realization hit him- they were both probably going to die today. After everything he’d done, all the bargaining, the deals he made, all to keep Craig alive- it was all a moot point. 

“Say goodbye, doc. Should’ve done some more research,” Nero grinned, swiping the blade quickly across Boone’s throat.

Time slowed almost to a stop. Craig’s beautiful emerald green eyes widened in shock and terror, staring at Arcade. Blood rushed down his white shirt in what seemed like a river, soaking the dirt black beneath him. He mouthed ‘I love you’ at Arcade...then collapsed. His body hit the ground heavily, and then he didn’t move anymore.

Arcade distantly heard someone sobbing, wishing they would shut the hell up as he stared at his limp partner. The guards let him go, and time sped up again. Arcade slowly became aware that the sobbing he heard was his own as he dragged himself towards Craig, chest heaving with thick, choked off breaths.

“Craig, no, nononono! Plese, get up, get up, get up! Craig, this isn’t funny, I can’t live without you!” He cried brokenly, pulling his partner’s body close. Craig jerked, green eyes flicking up to the blonde’s face. 

‘I love you, I’m sorry,’ he mouthed, falling completely limp against the researcher only seconds later. Arcade let out a broken sob, burying his face against his partner and closing his eyes tight, hoping in vain that this was all just some kind of fucked up nightmare. If he tried hard enough, he would wake up in bed right next to Craig, holding him tight.

Nero grabbed the collar on Arcade’s neck, yanking him back. The researcher choked harshly, stumbling back against the redhead. The knife fell to the ground with a clatter of metal, and Arcade could barely hear the click of a pistol being loaded over the sound of his own broken sobs.

“It’s been real fun, doc! You could’ve been a little better in bed though. I mean, the whole Caesar thing too, but mostly the bed part.” 

Nero forced Arcade to his knees, and Arcade looked up at the man helplessly. 

Finally, he closed his eyes, accepting his fate. Better to be dead than live with what he’d done. Coward’s path or not, it was all out of his hands. 

“Say goodnight, doc. You’ll be seein’ your boyfriend again real soon.”

_Bang!_


End file.
